Since the September elections, the Australia economy has recorded an uptick in activity levels and business sentiment from the lows recorded earlier in 2013, supported by both domestic and external factors. Domestically, prospects of lower regulatory burden, ranging from taxes to various regulatory procedures, have helped lift the outlook for certain industries, such as oil and gas. Moreover, September's readings of the performance indices showed that deterioration in the services and construction sectors were moderating, while activity in the manufacturing sector posted expansion in both September and October. Still, we continue to see a shift of consumption habits towards private labels in Australia over the coming years as a growing number of consumers acknowledge private labels as a very compelling alternative to proprietary branded goods.